After Hours with Glass Cleaner
by nightmarekitt
Summary: Vlad is the Principal of a school. Danny is a janitor. One late-night encounter sparks something unstoppable between them, but with all the obstacles that stand in their way, can things really work out? Pompous Pep.
1. Chapter 1

**After Hours with Glass Cleaner**

**Author's Note:** _I came across an interesting idea on tumblr yesterday. The "prompter" so-to-speak is _ohno-genitals_ (gosh that name!) and the prompt was something along the lines of Vlad as a Principal of a school and Danny as a Janitor who comes into Vlad's office one night to clean while Vlad is there. Sparks fly. You know the rest, but if you don't, well...here it is. I have no idea how long this will end up being. It is Pompous Pep and it will be quite slashy at some point._

There's something about staying late in the office that makes you want to leave off as many lights as possible. So it stood that Vlad Masters sat at his desk working only by the light of his computer screen, the dim blue light reflecting off of the lenses of his square-rimmed glasses.

He was about 1200 words deep into an urgent letter that needed to be sent out to the teaching staff the next morning, when he heard the distinct sound of someone jamming a key into doorhandle to his office. Then, to Vlad's utter dismay, the key-holder strolled in liked they owned the place.

The intruder froze in his tracks at seeing the principal sitting behind his desk, and Vlad certainly must have appeared creepy with nothing but the light of the monitor highlighting his face and the crisp edges of his fitted suit.

The intruder was clearly the janitor. He wore pale blue coveralls dotted with bleach stains, had a trash bag slung over one shoulder, and kept a rag and a few spray bottles clipped onto his belt. Behind him, Vlad could see a trolley full of cleaning supplies and a yellow mop bucket in the hall.

To break the awkward silence, Vlad said, "I'll be done in just a moment. By all means, carry on."

Vlad's eyes were already back on the monitor by the time the janitor continued his work, as he moved things around the office and started making a handful of sounds one could generally associate with cleaning.

Including humming.

There was a lot of humming going on: some off-beat tune that Vlad didn't recognize, nor did he care to.

The principal glanced over once or twice, both times a bit startled to see the janitor on hands and knees, reaching beneath furniture to reach this miplaced object or that. It wasn't until Vlad caught himself appreciating the stretch of those coveralls across the other man's ass that it occured to the principal that this man was a bit young to be a janitor.

Janitors tended to be down-on-your-luck, old, and without-other-options kind of people, but this man looked to be in his early twenties. Heaven forbid he actually be a teenager. Vlad jerked his eyes back to his computer screen and typed a bit of jibberish to fill what he hoped wasn't an obvious silence. He needed to control himself.

The Distraction [capital "D"] didnt' help Vlad's situation by standing into a long, teasing stretch, before humming his way back into the hall and returning with a squeaky-wheeled vacuum cleaner.

"You mind?" said the Distraction, and Vlad waved a hand like he didn't care.

Moments later the vacuum whirred to life, and Vlad was only a bit appalled when he was promptly dragged out of the way by the intrusive janitor so the man could get the space under his desk.

"You're quite thorough," Vlad said, irritation apparent. But his annoyance disappeared when the Distraction flashed a grin in his direction, vivid blue eyes practically gleaming with mirth.

"So why the late night?" the janitor asked, pulling the vacuum out of the way and nudging Vlad back into place with a casual swing of his hip. Vlad's fingers fell back into place on the keyboard, but he didn't type another word.

"Parents complaining about the teachers doing this or that - the usual," Vlad said, giving up all pretense of working and slumping against his high-back chair. "I don't even understand _how _people raise their children these days. Hellions, all of them."

"You don't like kids?" the janitor asked.

"I don't dislike them," Vlad replied evasively.

"A school principal who doesn't like kids. Sounds like something you'd see in a cartoon."

Vlad eyed the janitor as he rolled up the vacuum cord. "How old are you?"

"Twenty-three."

"You're still practically a child yourself. Why are you a janitor?"

Those gleaming blue eyes met Vlad's darker ones. "Why not? Money's money, right? And cleaning is easy."

"I know an evasive answer when I hear one," Vlad declared.

"And I know when I'm being watched," the janitor retorted, raising his brows. "But I'm nice enough not to point it out - not that I mind." He smirked.

Vlad actually blushed.

"Well, I'm all done here." The janitor let go of the vacuum long enough to reach a hand over Vlad's desk. Vlad stood and shook it slowly.

"I apologize if I've offended you," Vlad began, but the janitor shushed him.

"Not offended at all - flattered, actually. It's been a while since anyone's really cared to notice."

"Vlad Masters," Vlad said after a short pause.

"I know. You're the principal. My name's Danny, Vlad." He let go of Vlad's hand and went back to get the vacuum. Danny was half way out of the door when Vlad realized that he really was staring quite intently, and he still had his hand raised over his desk where they had shaken hands. He dropped it quickly, but he didn't look away.

"Maybe I'll see you later, yeah?" Danny said, slowly shutting the door as he left.

Vlad sat slowly back in his chair, heart thudding in his chest. He tried to breath evenly; he failed.

This couldn't be happening.

It was.

He dropped his elbows on his desk and buried his red face in his hands, and tried to think up a way to avoid a situation that was clearly already out of his control.


	2. Chapter One Point Five

**Author's Note: **I'm not really sure what phanniemay is, but I am sooo appreciative! Fanart and fanfic has been popping up all over the place, and I've spent the past few weeks going: WTF IS HAPPENING?! In lieu of that, know that this fanfiction has been entirely written. Please enjoy.

**Chapter 1.5**

The principal was something else. Danny didn't really understand what his deal was. The man was a total knock-out: drop-dead gorgeous, but waaay too old to be stepping into Danny's territory. That didn't stop the man from trying, however. It was cute, but Vlad was way out of Danny's league and the janitor knew that with certainty.

He also knew about Vlad's fiance. Yeah, the media generally sucked, but his proposal to Veronica Jameson on live television six months ago was hard to miss. Not to mention, Vlad had been sporting her as arm candy for the better part of a year. Everybody knew that. Vlad Masters was a very rich, very popular man. Why he decided to top that off by being a High School Principal, the world had yet to guess.

Two weeks after that initial, impromptu ass-appreciation session, Vlad was at it again, though he was being far less conspicuous this time. Danny was in the man's office again, and yeah, it was definitely dark out. Miraculously, Vlad managed to open the door without Danny noticing, and had probably been staring at the younger man for better part of five minutes. Danny was dusting the bookshelves, and in all his thoroughness, was hands-and-knees at it again, trying to neaten up the bottom ones.

"Are you trying to show off?" came Vlad's voice out of the blue.

Danny sat up and turned around to see. The angle was awkward.

"It's Friday," the janitor said pointedly. "Shouldn't you be out at a gala or something?"

"Funny," said the older man, dipping in hands into the pockets of his very well tailored suit. "I came back for something I left in my desk. I forgot that you'd be cleaning."

_Liar_, Danny wanted to say, but kept his mouth shut. He sort of waved his hand vaguely towards Vlad's desk, saying something like, "it's your office."

Vlad walked over and rummaged around the desk for a few moments and Danny did his best to ignore him.

"Ah-hah!" Vlad said triumphantly, holding up a sticky note with a phone number scribbled across it.

"Hey," Danny asked suddenly, sweeping dust from several reference books with a rag. "Why'd you decide to be a principal? Aren't you like a billionaire or something?"

"It's a good cover," Vlad said, sounding not at all offended. "I'm actually a secret agent."

Danny actually dropped the book he was holding. "Please tell me that wasn't supposed to be a pick-up line."

"Did it work?" Vlad wondered, walking over to where Danny was sitting on the floor.

"You are engaged," Danny accused, "and straight as far as the papers are concerned."

"Am I?" Vlad teased, and to Danny's utter annoyance, left the room without so much as a backwards glance.

"Jerk," Danny muttered under his breath, and tried no to stare at the older man's ass on the way out.


	3. Chapter 2

**Note**: I don't dig dichotomy [ie – pitch pearl & striking fear], at least, not when it comes to Danny and Vlad and their ghost-personas. Please read on with that in mind. I never thought I'd have to explain that, but that particular trope has gotten to be kind of a big deal and I don't want to confuse anyone. I plan to post **one chapter per week,**_ however, _the more reviews I get, the more likely that is to change. And for the record? This entire fic is officially written. There are 10 chapters.

**Chapter Two**

Two weeks had passed since Vlad's awkward encounter with the young janitor, and for the first time since, he was pulling a late night. A suicide attempt on campus the day prior had caused an awful stir among the local community, and the school needed quite a bit of damage control, or else the media would eat them alive. However, after 12 hours of not leaving the office and a constantly growling stomach, Vlad figured that a quick trip to the vending machines by the cafeteria was in order. He grabbed his coat and pulled it on, stepped out of the office, and locked the door behind him. The campus was pitch dark at this hour, partly for environmental and funding purposes, but mostly because Vlad couldn't stand the stadium lighting that the school had outside of the halls.

Besides, _he _didn't need the extra light to see in the dark. He made his way to the vending machines slowly, allowing the fresh air outside to soothe his nerves. Once he rounded the last corner and saw the machines tucked up under an overhang, he pulled a few dollars out of his wallet and settled for a bottle of apple juice and a granola bar. As he made his way back to his office, he noticed that the lights were on in one of the classrooms. _Room 203, Home Economics, Ms. Johnson - _Vlad's mind supplied. He also remembered that the teacher was meticulous about her classroom _and _an environmental nut. The woman wouldn't leave those lights on if you paid her to.

It wasn't until he was just outside the 200 series hallway that he remembered the janitor. The idea of seeing _Danny _again had Vlad so flustered that he didn't even dare go in. Instead, he spun around in place, planning to go back to his office without delay, and came face-to-face with the man in question.

"Well, hello," Danny greeted, giving Vlad a knowing look. "Going somewhere, Mr. Principal?"

"I..I was going back to my office." _I sound like an idiot, _Vlad thought unhappily.

"Took a detour, huh? Change your mind?"

"When I recalled the likely reason for those lights to be on, I decided it was probably better to leave you to it."

The other man had a mop in one hand and a bucket in the other, Vlad noticed, but he didn't appear to be in much of a hurry.

"Not very nice, are you?"

Vlad smirked, finally feeling back in his element. "_No_."

Danny rolled his eyes. "Well, if you wouldn't mind getting the doors for me, I'd appreciate it."

Ever the gentleman, Vlad complied.

"There's the classroom door, too," Danny said cheekily as Vlad started to walk away.

"In retrospect, wouldn't it have been smarter to leave it open, then?"

"But then I wouldn't have an excuse to annoy you, _Vlad_."

Vlad scoffed. "As if you planned this."

Danny turned just enough to shoot him a grin. "How do you know I didn't?"

Grumbling half-heartedly, Vlad followed him down the hall to the classroom. He opened that door as well, despite the janitor's smug expression.

"I should dock your pay for this," the principal said.

"Go ahead. It's not enough to get by on anyway," Danny said, setting the mop bucket on the floor and dipping the mop head into the soapy water inside. He picked a back corner and started swabbing.

"What do you mean?" Vlad asked, propping a hip against a table and tearing open his granola bar. He took a dainty bite.

"I have another job," Danny said. "Two if you want to get technical about it, but only one that really pays."

"Oh? What's the third one, then? An internship?"

Danny snorted. "If only."

"What's the day job?"

Danny pushed a trashcan to the side with his foot so he could swab a tight corner, saying, "I'm a mechanic. Heard of Rig's?"

"That truck stop just off of the interstate?"

"Yeah, that's the one. I do basic service for big rigs."

Vlad was frowning. "So you what? Pump their gas? Check their oil?"

"Most tractor-trailers run on diesel. Tire pressure's the real kicker. Do you know how many tires are on a thirteen-axle with a stinger? Yeesh!"

Vlad laughed. "Well, at least you don't sound too upset about it."

"I aim for optimism on the worst of days." Danny was nearly done with the floor now. Vlad maneuvered out of the way as the janitor started on the second half of the room, and very quickly got distracted by the muscles lining the younger man's arms.

"Did you ever want to do anything else, Daniel?" Vlad asked seriously.

Danny paused in mopping long enough to the meet the principal's eyes. "No. My childhood dream was to clean scuffed floors and argue about tire pressure with truckers."

Vlad made a face, and Danny burst out laughing.

"I'm being serious," the older man said sharply, clearly not amused.

Danny managed to contain his amusement long enough to say, "I know. Oh, and one more thing? Don't call me Daniel. My name is _Danny_. Just Danny."

"Seriously?"

"Yep."

Vlad smirked. "Well, now that I know that, I am going to make a point in always calling you Daniel, to save you the indignity of living out your days with a nickname for a first name."

The janitor gave him a disgruntled look. "But it's not my _name_."

"Accept it, and I'll give you a bonus."

"Are you bribing me?" Danny asked, half-laughing, but he really had perked up at the word "bonus". Vlad had a feeling that he really needed it.

"Of course not. You're getting a bonus anyway. I've already looked into it." _And a raise, _he didn't add.

"Oh, God. Is this you trying to seduce me?" Danny teased. "I know I may seem easy, but I'll have you know that I cannot be bought with mere money."

"Oh?" Vlad wondered. "What would it take?"

"Common courtesy," Danny said quickly. "You're already out of the red. You opened two doors for me, after all, that's two points."

"Did you say I was in the red? Why was I in the red?"

"That first day, you sat in your chair while I vacuumed."

"You said it was fine!"

"And you have a tendency to miss the most basic of social cues, Mr. Masters. A nicer person would have moved for the ten seconds it takes me to vacuum that office."

"Dan_iel_."

"Excuse me. I need to mop there."

Danny actually shoved Vlad out of the classroom with a hip. "Don't you have work to do?" He was grinning from ear-to-ear.

"Why do I like you?" Vlad wondered aloud.

Danny actually blushed. "No idea."

"I left my apple juice on the table."

Danny glanced over at it. "Mm, that part of the floor is wet now. It's a no-go."

The principal sighed. "Guess that's it then." He turned and began his retreat. He was nearly to the exit of the hallway, when he heard it.

"I guess I like you, too."


	4. Chapter 3

**Chapter Three**

The shift from ghost form to human was so utterly satisfying. Vlad loved the raw heat that shot through his blood before the inevitable chill of death set in, his body going icy cold around his boiling core.

He was running late for work one morning, and rather than wait impatiently for his personal chauffer, he'd decided to suck it up and fly. Not that he didn't enjoy flying to work, but it was maddening to sit through one of those boring conferences while on an adrenaline high.

He had just reached the school campus, when he saw something out of the corner of his eye: a familiar streak of black and white. Vlad grinned and changed direction, tearing after the streak in the sky.

"Good morning, Phantom," he said cordially, catching up to the younger ghost and admiring his spectral tail.

"Plasmius," Phantom noted, slowing down. "What are you doing here?"

Vlad, ever the tyrant, had usurped a fair portion of the Ghost Zone when he'd gotten his powers twenty years ago. When he moved to Amity, he was shocked to learn that another formidable ghost had already claimed the town as his own territory, even if unwittingly. Curious, Vlad had left the matter alone. He rarely dealt with Phantom, but he knew the ghost had a bit of a hero-complex and packed quite a punch when provoked. Not to say that Vlad didn't think he could handle the younger ghost, he just wasn't inclined to start fights where there was no need to. After all, Phantom was agreeable enough.

"Just enjoying the crisp morning air," Vlad finally replied. "You?"

"Patrol," he said casually. "Spectra's been around again."

Vlad frowned. On the scale of unpleasant ghosts, Spectra definitely ranked somewhere near the top. Vlad refused to even deal with her. For her to have been anywhere around the high school was alarming.

"At the school?"

"You hear about that suicide attempt?"

Vlad's blood boiled. "That was _Spectra_?"

Phantom nodded.

"What are you going to do once you catch up to her?" Vlad had to know.

"I'm going to take her to Walker. There's a bounty on her head."

"Is that wise? Rumor has it, there's a bounty on your head, as well."

Phantom winced. "I was hoping that he'd ease up a little if I brought her in."

"That's foolish, little badger."

Phantom bristled at the nickname. "I'd rather toss her at Walker and run than have her messing with kids here."

"I've a better idea," Vlad stated. "Give her to me, and I'll take her to the warden. I have a better relationship with him anyway."

Phantom laughed. "Relationship? He's terrified of you!"

"Are you going to accept my offer or not?"

"Fine. Yeah. Where?"

"Lakeman's Bridge? At ten tonight?"

"Sure. Um, thanks."

"It's nothing. I'm not so fond of Spectra myself."

#

Phantom brought Spectra to Vlad in an ecto-net.

"This was the best you could do? A net?"

"Oh, shut up, Plasmius," Phantom huffed, dropping the unconscious ghost on the ground at Vlad's feet. The abandoned bridge loomed over them, barely darker than the night itself. The ghosts themselves glowed softly, emitting their own light, not that they needed it. All ghosts had predator's eyes, glowing and all-seeing even in the dark.

Vlad nudged Spectra with the toe of a boot. She didn't so much as twitch. Phantom had really done a number on her.

"Well done, little badger. She's out cold." Vlad remarked, a note of pride to his tone. "If it weren't for your taxing hero complex, I'd ask you to work for _me._"

"Ew. God, you're awful at flirting." Phantom said, making a disgusted face.

Vlad rolled his eyes. "I have it on good authority that I'm actually quite good at flirting; thank you, very much. And for the record,_ I wasn't_."

"Whatever you say, fruitloop."

Vlad glared and grabbed the end of the ecto-net, shooting a pulse of energy through it for good measure.

"Thanks, again, Plasmius."

The older ghost tugged the net into the air. Spectra was actually fairly heavy.

"Don't mention it."


End file.
